NLL Crystal Ball: Week 17

Well, we've reached the final week of the regular season. I went 3-2 last week, so I'm at 38-30 on the season. Over at IL Indoor the best of the experts (Jenner and Pilson) are at 35-33, so as long as I go .500 this week I'm guaranteed to finish ahead of them. As I've been saying all season - the less you know, the better. It's been an odd season for making picks. Maybe next year I'll get Lannis to work her smarties, and the Gnome to flip his coin and see how random methods stack up. This week's picks, favourites and bonus bets are after the break.

This Week's Picks

1. Philadelphia at Rochester
1. The Wings will sort out their recent slump issues by beating the Knighthawks.
2. Colorado at Minnesota
1. The Mammoth haven't been great lately, while the Swarm have, but in this preview of a playoff matchup I have to go with Colorado. Although perhaps I should go with my gut feeling that Minnesota has an upset in them one of these weeks.
3. Toronto at Edmonton
1. The Rock need the win for the division title; the Rush need the win for a pride tune-up heading into the playoffs. Toronto will win a close one.
4. Buffalo at Washington
1. The Bandits are fighting for positioning in the playoffs; the Stealth are fighting for positions on the team next year. I think Buffalo has solved some of their issues for this season, whereas Washington is a mess.

Favourites to Win the Cup
If the playoffs started today, here's what I see happening.

1. (2) Calgary (would beat Edmonton, Colorado and Toronto)
1. Whoever wants to win the Champion's Cup is going to have to beat the Roughnecks, or hope that someone else does it for them in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
2. (1) Colorado (would beat Minnesota but lose to Calgary)
1. The Mammoth have come back to earth a bit, but they still look like the biggest threat to Calgary.
3. (4) Toronto (would beat Rochester and Philadelphia before losing to Calgary)
1. With the regular season almost over, I'm sure the Rock will be happy to lock up two home playoff games and then forget about the past few months.
4. (5) Minnesota (would lose to Colorado)
1. The Swarm have to be this year's wildcard. I'm already starting to think about an upset in the first round.
5. (3) Philadelphia (would beat Buffalo but lose to Toronto)
1. If the Wings get hot and ride Dawson, they have a better shot than most at getting to the finals.
6. (8) Buffalo (would lose to Philadelphia)
1. The Bandits are built for the playoffs, but they're also a team built for stupid shenanigans. You never know what you're going to get.
7. (7) Edmonton (would lose to Calgary)
1. I would love to believe that the Rush will beat Calgary (again?) one day, but I just can't see it happening in the playoffs this season.
8. (6) Rochester (would lose to Toronto)
1. The Knighthawks are going to be scary in a year or two.
9. (9) Washington (not in the playoffs)
1. Mercifully, the Stealth's season is finally over after spending more than half of it in the basement.

Bonus Bets

1. John Grant will score 3 goals and 4 assists to pass John Tavares as the league's single season scoring leader with 117 points.
2. Garrett Billings will put up 1 goal and 4 assists to end the season with 83 assists and 111 points.
3. Dan Dawson will get 8 assists (and probably 1 goal) and end the season with 85 helpers for the new season record.